Re: [Paddlewise] SPOT anxiety

Jackie (hi!):

Yeah, it's all good. The benefits derived from this device are fantastic. 
Heck, my penny-pinching, no-more-toys-for-Douglas wife might even agree I 
should get one of theses SPOT devices (actually, my best buddy rents his 
out).

It was strictly the false alarm issue under discussion - the cry wolf 
atmosphere that may pollute the good air.

Okay, back to finishing my kitchen (off for two more weeks from work to do 
so - wish I was paddling).

Cheers

Doug L


> Doug Lloyd wrote:
>
>> The SPOT device is a promising alternative (see the review in SK Mag's 
>> latest August issue) to PLB's with GPS, but only time will tell the 
>> ultimate value and usefullness in extremis where there exists a public 
>> mindset demanding that every answer - every solution - be avaliable, at 
>> the push of a button. The answer is still in somewhere in the push - and 
>> pull - of the paddle. Never less in the colds waters of Alaska.
>
>
>
> Oh, I dunno.... right now I'm "watching" Bob participate in an all-night 
> adventure race at Lake Meade.  I haven't talked to him since about 10:00 
> this morning when he was driving up there but right now I can see that 
> he's been in the water (or maybe it's mud since it's Lake Meade) for about 
> three hours (kayaking?... swimming?... slogging?), hiked up an elevated 
> area (I'm looking at the satellite image and I can't tell if it's a hill 
> or a mountain), sigzagged back and fourth across the top (did you forget 
> to sign in at the check-in point, Bob?),  and now headed south over some 
> rough terrain... in the dark in the desert.  I have no idea where the 
> finish is ('Finish' is not noted on the satellite image) and if SPOT stops 
> transmitting (which does happen), I'll go back to sanding the ceiling in 
> the kitchen.
>
> I couldn't be there but I'm actually getting a better view via the 
> continually updated images :-)  There are some fun aspects to it.
>
> A couple of centuries ago, families sat at home waiting for letters that 
> might arrive before the traveler returned home which described their 
> adventures.   Now we see it live (sort of).
>
> Bob set up a tracker while we cruised Alaska and you can actually go to 
> the website which displays the route and either post an image or look at 
> other images posted by travelers to the area and read information specific 
> to that area (which is really cool when you want to know more about a 
> glacier and why it was named after Dr. So&So or why any particular town is 
> located where it is when it has no roads coming or going).   It's kind of 
> fun.  Or maybe that was some other tracking tech-mabob he's got.  I can't 
> keep up with all his tech toys.
>
> Jackie
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